United Press International: Lucky Break for Jordan
A group of American anti-war demonstrators who came to Iraq with Japanese human shield volunteers made it across the border today with 14 hours of uncensored video, all shot without Iraqi government minders present. Kenneth Joseph, a young American pastor with the Assyrian Church of the East, told UPI the trip "had shocked me back to reality." Some of the Iraqis he interviewed on camera "told me they would commit suicide if American bombing didn't start. They were willing to see their homes demolished to gain their freedom from Saddam's bloody tyranny. They convinced me that Saddam was a monster the likes of which the world had not seen since Stalin and Hitler. He and his sons are sick sadists. Their tales of slow torture and killing made me ill, such as people put in a huge shredder for plastic products, feet first so they could hear their screams as bodies got chewed up from foot to head."
And just to make sure they get the point...
Xanga dissidentfrogman's Weblog 3/23/2003: "Coalition of Simpletons"
I just hope you'll remember that while you were systematically denying and dismissing your government's cogent and restrained policy and while you were - most probably - comparing Mr. Bush with Hitler or your country with the worst dictatorships in History and claiming "it's about oil", which eventually led you on this path of enlightenment that ended in Baghdad with a reality check, people were actually being slowly tortured and put in plastic shredders, feet first.
The paradox is: Sometimes war saves lives. I know, it's not obvious, but it's true nonetheless.
I'll suggest that Iraq is fighting out of its weight class. The only reason we haven't glazed Baghdad is that we actually don't want to hurt them. And this does handicap us somewhat: Word is, the only reason Iraqi TV is still on the air is that their broadcast tower is on top of a daycare center and hospital. (Or so I've heard: Still searching for confirmation.) If true, I can't think of any way to read it other than to conclude that Iraqi children's lives mean more to the U.S. Army than they do to the Iraqi government.
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